新年快樂 新 Happy Chinese New Year!! Year of the Dragon

It's a celebration!  Chinese New Year.  

We celebrate the Year of the Dragon for our children to retain and remember their culture.  To enjoy another culture that brought us quite a few of our treasures.

Red envelopes with "lucky" money.  Door decorations.  Going to the teens all time fave Chinese restaurant where they cook for them while they watch and salivate- ha ha.

We have a Dragon boy, Camden will be 12 this year making him born in the Year Of the Dragon.  And he is quite the typical dragon child, fiery, bigger than life heart, intense, smart.  A joy even when he's spittin' fire:) after all he does get that red hair honestly

So at this Chinese New Year's time, we enjoy the treasures we have been blessed with. We had a special surprise for them. We don't have many opportunities to have Chinese people over living in a rural area, so we make our own celebrations.


Via our pastor and wife, we were asked to come to movie night at their house Friday.  We kept the movie a surprise.  It was the Jesus film in CHINESE.  The teens really enjoyed it.  Kat got a kick out of picking out a few words she knew.  I heard "son" more than once:)  We had a ton of snacks, even so, the pastor was shocked how much these kids can eat- ha ha. Not us, we are used to it.


It's a standing joke with Chance, who has little impulse control when it comes to food.  He ate himself sick for Chinese New Year and when I exclaimed I forgot my camera for our meal pics, Chloe went and took a picture of Chance in the WC!  (Don't worry mom, she put the camera in the door and snapped the shot, she didn't look) I will not be posting that one.  You all can thank me later.


We have some interesting conversations with that boy, Chance, he got in trouble this week in school because he thought he could throw out some one's notebook and he could pretend he didn't know better.  WELL..... he now has detention to prove to him he will not get away with that any longer.


He really thinks he is Joe Cool and needs to get over himself.  He  said in the van  today when he was asking what he needed to do to get his Ipod back and Chloe chimed in.  He said "Mom, I thought we were supposed to keep our own mouth on self?"


After I deciphered what he was saying I realized he was meaning something we tell them OFTEN.  Mind your own business, don't worry about someone else getting in trouble, keep yourself in line.


Other than Mr. Funny guy's issues in school, we have continued to see everyone working together, EFFORT being made, harmony working in our home.  Oh, the JOY of that is huge.  


Even better is Chase, who saw the Jesus film and then asked the Lord into his heart.  WHOO HOOOO, our son is saved.  Not even 3 years home with these 3 teens and all 3 have learned of Him, want to belong to Him and serve Him.  


Our pastor and his wife have been so incredibly supportive and we are so blessed to have them helping us plug away with the teens::)


 It just blows me away that all 3 have been able to take this step, are able to feel the love Our Father has for them.  It's huge for them and yet again, have to feel thankful that God brought them here.


All of them:)  Children of God. Orphans no longer. 


 Hope your New Year is as blessed as ours.